Standout Lineman Arnold Named To Rockville High School Hall

VERNON, CT — A starting two-way tackle on consecutive 10-1 teams whose final career game resulted in the program’s first state football championship, Brian J. Arnold is the second announced 2021 inductee into the Rockville High School Athletic Hall of Fame, it has been announced by committee chair Scott Smith.

A native of Rockville, Arnold becomes the 12th RHS Hall of Fame inductee whose resume includes the sport of football, but is the first inductee to earn induction solely on the basis of a football career. He also becomes only the second interior lineman to receive the honor, following 2016 inductee Tom Lucerini ’71.

The eighth RHS Hall of Fame Social and Induction Ceremonies are scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 19 at the high school. A 1 p.m. social will be followed by the 2 p.m. ceremonies. Tickets are priced at $20 and can be reserved by contacting Scott Smith at smithsc33sbcglobal.net or at 860-604-6618.

With his selection, Arnold becomes only the third single-sport athlete to gain RHS Hall of Fame induction, following softball pitcher Lauren Person (2019) and alongside fellow 2021 inductee Jason Metzger, a baseball pitcher who was the first announced inductee of the class on July 23.

In his final two seasons at Rockville, the 6-foot-4, 250-pound Arnold was a key figure on teams which manhandled their opponents on the offensive and defensive lines – allowing one touchdown or less 12 times in 22 games – as the Rams posted consecutive unbeaten 7-0 records in the CCC East, consecutive 10-1 overall records, and back-to-back berths in the Class L state title game. In his final game in a Ram uniform, Arnold was on the field for the fabled "Leary Lob" on fourth down that propelled the team to its historic last-minute 14-10 win over CCC rival Newington in the Class L state championship game (the winning drive set up by a fumble recovery at midfield with two minutes left).

Today, Arnold points to the fallout from a 46-0 loss in the 1989 state title game as the driving force behind 1990's milestone season.

"That loss to West Haven was awful," Arnold sad. "We were laser-focused after that – we had a core of believers in 1990 with the same mindset."

Coming off a 7-3 record in Arnold's sophomore season of 1988, RHS was tabbed in the 1989 pre-season by conference coaches as ‘the team to beat’ in the CCC. With Arnold serving as a key to the formidable offensive and defensive lines, the Rams outscored their opponents 140-6 through the first five games and went on to their first unbeaten regular season (10-0), capped by a 27-12 win at South Windsor on Thanksgiving weekend.

After losing to defending Class LL champ Glastonbury on its home field in the season-opener, Rockville ran the table en route to qualifying for the 1990 state championship game. Following that opening loss, the Ram were virtually untested the rest of the regular season. With both Rockville and South Windsor playing for a spot in the state playoffs – with the CCC title on the line as well -- Rockville defeated South Windsor by two touchdowns at home on Thanksgiving Day, and slipped into the L final after Naugatuck later lost to Ansonia (by losing, South Windsor missed out for a spot in the MM game by .11 points).

After being named to the All-CCC East team on offense in 1989, Arnold was selected on both offense and defense in 1990. In addition to being named to the Nutmeg Bowl in August as one of the state’s top seniors, Arnold was additionally named to the prestigious New Haven Register All-State football team as a first-team pick on offense.

Pursued by several big-time Division I colleges – among them Boston College and Syracuse – upon graduation from RHS, Arnold accepted a full scholarship from the University of Connecticut.

A 1997 graduate of UConn with a liberal arts degree, Arnold works as a certified mental health professional with the Department of Children and Families at the Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee and resides in Tallahassee with his wife, LaTunya.